Non-loosening hinge and mold



June 1967 R. ANDERSON NON-LOOSENING HINGE AND MOLD 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 24, 1965 INVENTOR LLOYD R. Auosnsow ATTORNEY June 27, 1967 L. R. ANDERSON NON-LOOSENING HINGE AND MOLD 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 24, 1965 5 l 5 BM LLOY D R. ANDERSON 3 5K 3|5 F ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,327,435 NGN-LOOSENING HINGE AND MOLD Lloyd Robert Anderson, 5400 Pooks Hill Road, Bethesda, Md. 26014 Filed Oct. 24, 1965, Ser. No. 504,710 6 Claims. (Cl. 5227) The present application is a continuation-in-part of application Serial No. 271,546, filed Mar. 25, 1963, now Patent No. 3,241,177.

The present invention rel-ates to building hardware and more particularly to a hinge construction of general utility such as used on doors.

The present invention relates to floor mounted door closers and more particularly to a method and means for mounting floor mounted door closers accurately in position in a floor and particularly in thin concrete floors in which the cement case of the door closer is of greater depth than the thickness of the floor.

Heretofore it has been customary to cast the cement floor around a cement case when the main floor was poured and it was diflicult to mount the cement case accurately and inaccuracies in the location of the cement case and resulting inaccuracies in the location of floor mounted door closer occurred. This resulted in stresses and strains on the fastenings of the door to the closer and on the door and on the shaft and bearings of the door closer.

An object of the present invention is to overcome these problems by providing a door leaf which becomes, in effect, a part of the door and the axis of the boss receiving the pivot is accurately aligned and kept in alignment with the hinge axis at all times and particularly when the initial mounting of the cement case, door closer, and the door is made.

Other and further objects will be apparent as the description proceeds and upon reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective of a closed door mounted on a floor mounted door closer and non-loosening pivot hinge of the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is a perspective of an opposite handed top pivot hinge used in the mounting of the door of FIG- URE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a transverse section through the pivot of the hinge shown in FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary section taken on line 44 of FIGURE 1 showing the mortise mount of the pivot hinge.

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective of a portion of the door and door hinge leaf mounted on a floor mounted closer.

FIGURE 6 is a perspective of a single pivot type hinge similar to that shown in FIGURE 2 and corresponding to the hinge shown in FIGURE 1 but opposite handed and provided with a bevel or chamfer at the free end of the head strap providing for insertion into an accurately sized mortise recess.

FIGURE 7 is a section taken through the floor adjacent the hinge end of the floor door closer shown in FIGURE 5 showing the cement case in end elevation and showing the open top container used as a mold being retained in operative position by wires extending from the bottom of the mold to bars extending across the opening of the floor and supported on blocks permitting easy access to the floor surface for accurately locating the cement case and accurately smoothing the cement to the level of the floor.

FIGURE 8 is a plan view of the mold case open top container mold with the central portion broken away showing the wire holding means for retaining the mold in place without requiring access to the space under the floor.

Upon more detailed reference to FIGURES 1 to 4 of the drawings, a door frame having a hinge jamb 20, a head jamb 21, and a lock jamb 22 receives a door 23 which is pivotally mounted by means of a top non-loosening pivot hinge 24 and a bottom door closer or pivot hinge 25 having a vertically extending shaft 26 which receives a hub 27 fixed to the door and plate 28 of a dihedral angle bracket door hinge leaf having a rigid strap or door heel plate 29 with the plates of the closer dihedral angle bracket door hinge leaf being mortise mounted in mortise recesses in the door as clearly shown in FIGURE 5 and being secured to the door 23 by means of screws 30 passing through countersunk openings in said plates. It will be noted that the bottom of the hub 2-7 is flush with the bottom surface of the end plate 28. The closer dihedral angle bracket door leaf is secured to the shaft 26 by means of a key 31 of cylindrical shape having an upwardly tapering fiat portion against which a locking screw 32 is tightened to maintain the hub and thereby the hinge leaf in fixed position on the shaft 26.

The door closer is of the type shown in United States Patent 2,501,505 and has the shaft 26 urged to door closing position.

To accurately locate the axis of shaft 26 and the case 25 of the closer, the jamb leaf of the pivot hinge 24 is mounted in proper position and a plumb line 26A is dropped therefrom passing through the plumb line aperture 43 of the jamb hub 37, the plumb bob 26B thereon providing an exact point of reference for the location of the center 26C of the shaft 26 and after proper positioning of the case 25, such case is grouted or otherwise secured in permanent position such as by use of the mold shown in FIGURES 7 and 8.

The upper end of the door 23 is hingedly mounted by the pivot hinge 24 which comprises a dihedral jamb leaf having a hinge jamb plate 33, and a head jamb plate 34 forming the dihedral angle jamb leaf which is received in mortise recesses in the hinge jamb 20 and head jamb 21 of the door frame. A door dihedral hinge leaf having a heel edge plate 35 and a head plate 36 fixedly connected together is received in mortise recesses in the heel edge and head end of the door, the various plates being secured in position by conventional screws.

An outwardly extending lug projects from the head jamb plate and carries a first hub 37 while an outwardly extending lug on the door head plate 36 carries a second hub 38 providing knuckle means which receive a pivot pin 39 providing pivotal connection for movement of the door leaf relative to the jamb leaf.

The hub 37 receives an anti-friction bearing 40 which engages the pivot pin 39. The pivot pin is removably secured to the door leaf hub 38 by means of a locking screw 41 threaded into a transverse opening, the lower end of the bore of the door hub being covered by a set screw 42 threaded into the lower end of the pin 39. The upper end of the jamb hub 37 is closed except for a small threaded plumb bob cord receiving bore 43 which is closed by a set screw 44. A thrust bearing 45 may be provided for use when the pivot hinge 24 is used at the bottom of a door and such thrust bearing may be of the anti-friction type to reduce friction and reduce wear. The present dihedral angle hinge leaf pivot hinge may be used at both ends of a door.

Upon reference to FIGURE 6 a single pivot hinge similar to that shown in FIGURE 2 but opposite handed includes a first dihedral angle member or jamb leaf having a head jamb plate 301 and a hinge jamb plate 302 connected together at right angles with the free end of the head jamb plate being provided with a chamfer or bevel 303 to assist insertion into the communicating mortise recesses in the head and hinge jambs of a door frame. Each jamb plate is provided with countersunk screw receiving openings 304 with the countersunk sides on the interior of the dihedral angle member. A first knuckle 305 is fixedly attached to the head plate 301.

A second dihedral angle member or door hinge leaf includes a door end plate 306 and door heel plate 337 fixedly connected together at the angle of the heel of a door and the end of the door for reception in communicating mortises in the end and heel of a door. A second knuckle 308 is fixed to the end door plate 3% and is pivotally connected to the first knuckle 305 by means of a pivot pin such as pivot pin 39 and the cooperating structures shown in FIGURE 2. The second hinge leaf or dihedral angle member is provided with countersunk screw receiving apertures 309 which have their countersunk sides on the outer surface of the dihedral angle member for securing the door leaf to the end and heel of the door. It will be apparent that the angle between the heel plate and end plate of the door hinge leaf will be made to correspond with the angle between the heel edge and adjacent end of a door which may include provision the edge bevel of a door similar to the angle formed between plates 117 and 119 of the modification shown in FIGURES 1 and 2 of applicants prior Patent 3,021,534.

The handing of the hinge shown in FIGURE 6 corresponds to the handing of the hinge shown in FIGURE 1 at the top of the door. Since the hinge of this type does not take any of the load of the weight of the door it is necessary to provide hinge structure such as a door closer 25 on the floor to take the load. The load due to the weight of the door is offset with respect to the axis of the shaft 26 of the door closer in two directions, onedirection of offset being due to the pivot axis being spaced outwardly of the face of the door 23, and the other direction of offset being due to the center of gravity of the door lying substantially midway between the hinge edge and lock edge of the door. To avoid damaging forces on the bearings of the shaft 26 of the door closer due to the offset of the pivot shaft 26 from the end door plate or leaf 28 (FIGURE 4) a rigid strap or heel plate extension 29 is provided along the heel of the doorforming a dihedral angle bracket member door leaf with bottom plate 28 to prevent rocking of the plate 28 in the event that the screws 30 of such plate 28 become loosened in use.

The mounting of a floor door closer in thin panel floors such as in the thin concrete floors now being used in construction particularly where panels or floors are only two inches thick presented a problem which had not been solved prior to the present invention.

This thin floor structure does not permit the mounting of the cement case of the door closer in an opening formed in such thin floor as the cement case which houses and supports the floor door closer 25 is about four inches in depth, and it has not been possible heretofore to obtain suificient connection or bond between the periphery of the cement case and the thin floor. For this reason builders have resorted to overhead closers which overhead door closers cause more strain on the top hinge resulting in loosening thereof and also involve additional installation and upkeep costs.

Another object of this invention is to overcome this problem of mounting floor door closers in the thin floors in which an opening has been formed in the floor to receive the cement case of a floor door closer regardless of whether the opening in the floor is formed in the casting process or broken into the floor after casting.

The opening 310 in the floor 311 is shown as bounded by the irregular dotted lines in approximately the place where the door closer 25 is to be mounted. The opening 310 is made of sufficiently large size to receive the cement case 312 which has a length much greater than the Width. As the cement case cannot be held in the thin floor 311 a container mold 313 is provided for location below the floor 311 with means to hold the moldin position.

The mold includes a bottom section 314 including a bottom 314A, side walls 314B, 314C and end walls 314D, 314E which walls are preferably formed from a single sheet of metal bent at the joining edges of the side and end walls to the bottom 314A and so that the bottom mold section can be opened substantially flat and shipped to the user in flat condition with a break to control the bending formed at the connection of the side and end walls to the bottom. When opened fiat the bottom section is in the form of a cross.

A top section 315 is also formed of a single sheet of sheet metal and includes side walls 313B, 315C, and end walls 315D, 315E and a connecting tab extension 315E on the end wall 315E which tab is secured to side wall 315C by staples 315K or the like.,A flange 315G extends outwardly from the top edge of each side and end wall of top section 315. Between each wall of the top section and between each wall and each flange a break for bending is made so that the top section may be shipped in flat condition and formed into shape and assembled with the bottom section at the time of use to the arrangement shown to reduce shipping space. Detents 315] are formed in and project inwardly in vertically extending rows on each side and end wall of the top section to engage the top edge of the corresponding wall of the bottom section as the bottom section is telescopically adjusted to provide the total depth desired for the mold while permitting insertion of the mold into a narrow space between the sides of the opening 310 in the floor. To assist in this action a portion of the flange 3156 such as 315H on diagonally opposite corners may be bent from each flange to extend inwardly of the top section to provide handles for this manipulation. After the depth is finally determined and the sections adjusted they may be additionally held in fixed relation to one another by means of staples similar to 315K driven with a conventional stapler or nails 315L or the like. It will be noted that U-shaped wires 316 passing through the bottom 314A with their bight portions engaging the bottom surface of the bottom 314A and the two legs of the wire passing upwardly provide means to force the bottom section upwardly and thereby causing the top edges of the walls 314B, 314C, 314D and 314E to engage the detents 315] whereby tension on each U-shaped wire 316 provides a corresponding force on the top section for holding the top section with its flanges 315G tightly against the bottom of the floor 311.

In use the mold with bottom section 314 entirely telescoped within top section 315 is inserted through the opening 310 in the floor by inserting one end foremost and then moving the mold into the position shown so that the mold completely closes the opening 310 at the bottom. The bottom section is then pushed downwardly relative to the top section for adequate depth to receiveand support the cement case 312. The wires 316 are then passed over one or more bars 317 supported on blocks 318 in spaced relation above the floor 311 and the wires are twisted sufiiciently tightly to retain the mold in operative position shown in FIGURE 7, the top section being held by detents 3151 against the top edges of the walls of the bottom section.

Cement grout which may include some small size gravel is placed in the mold and the cement case is positioned in the mold and additional cement grout 319 is added to fill the mold and the opening 310 to the level of the floor 311 and the surface smoothed. Care is taken to position the cement case accurately in level position so that the shaft 26 of the door closer will be in plumb axial alignment with the hinges 24 and 50 and the top of the cement case will be at the correct level to accommodate for the usual cover plate 320 of the door closer 25. The plumb tween the cement case 312 and the mold for additional strength. After the cement grout 319 has hardened the wires 316 are cut off flush with the fioor and the door can be hung and the lower end of the door supported by means of the door closer dihedral hinge leaf 28, 29 shown in FIGURE 5.

The wires 316 are located at a number of positions as shown so that the mold 313 can be properly supported. The wires 316 bend easily to permit insertion of the mold through the opening 310 while providing for effectively retaining the mold 313 in operative position. The wires also serve as reinforcing means for the cement grout and the unused wires can be twisted between other wires to additionally reinforce the cement grout.

It will be apparent that the sides of the opening 310 are purposely made irregular and clean to assure keying and bonding of the grout 319 to the floor.

Another method of accurately mounting the floor mouned door closer is accomplished by providing a center hinge 50 of the load bearing variety at the center of the door whereby the door 23 is pivotally mounted in the door frame by the top hinge 24 having its jamb leaf secured to the lintel and hinge jamb and the intermediate hinge 50 having its jamb leaf secured to the hinge jamb 20. The two hinges determine the pivotal axis of the door 23. The dihedral angle bracket 29, 28 is secured to the heel and bottom edges of the door and suspends the door closer assembly 25 including the cement case 312 in proper position from the door with the shaft 26 of the door closer in accurate alignment with the aligned axes of the hinges 24 and 50. The proper elevation of the bottom edge of the door for correct clearance from the floor is obtained by the adjustment between boss 27 and shaft 26. The cement case is fixed in position by the concrete or grout reinforced with the wires 319A.

The cement case and the floor mounted door closer can be installed in the correct position by this method using the mold of FIGURES 7 and 8 or they can be mounted in a new floor at the time the floor is poured.

In any event the use of the dihedral angle bracket 29, 28 assures that the axis of the door closer shaft 26 will be in alignment with the aligned axes of hinges 24 and 50. The correct axial alignment permanently prevents stresses and strains from occurring in the hinges, bearings, door, and shaft.

The mold structure of this invention makes it possible to use a floor mounted door closer in thin concrete floors and to accurately position the cement case for strain free operation.

The mounting of the cement case is permanent and is as effective as having the cement cast directly into the fioor 311. This mold structure and method of installation permits the use of floor door closers in practically any thin floor.

It will be apparent that various changes may be made in the structure within the spirit of the invention as defined by the valid scope of the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A floor door closer building structure mounted in a thin floor of less thickness than the depth of a cement case in which said closer is mounted and securely fixing the cement case in the thin floor, said mounting including an open top container mold having a closed bottom and sides, said container mold in plan being substantially larger than the cement case of the door closer, said open top container mold positioned with its open top edges in engagement with the under surface of the thin floor, and cement grout between the cement case and the thin floor and the container mold filling the space between the bottom and top of the thin floor and the space included within the sides and bottom of the container mold and the cement case thereby retaining the cement case in accurate fixed position in the floor and container mold for receiving the door closer mechanism whereby the mounting of the cement case is permanent for the life of the building.

2. The invention according to claim 1 in which tension members are secured to the container mold and extend through the cement grout outwardly of the cement case to the top surface of the floor.

3. A mold for use in mounting a hollow cement case of greater depth than the thickness of a panel in an opening in a panel for permanent fixed retention of the cement case in the panel, said mold comprising an open top container of substantially larger size in plan than the cement case to be mounted in the panel, the open top edges of said container mold adapted to contact the under surface of the panel, the depth of said container mold being substantially greater than the difference in depth between the cement case and the panel thickness, elongated tensile means connected to said container mold for passage through the opening in the panel alongside the cement case for securing the mold container to the panel whereby the container may be fixed to the panel by said tension means, and filling grout placed between the container mold and the cement case and between the sides of the opening and the cement case for securely joining the cement case by means of cement grout in fixed relation to the panel.

4. The invention according to claim 3 in which said mold container has a bottom section having a bottom and sides and a top section open at the top and bottom and having its sides in telescoping relation to the sides of the bottom section for adjustment of the depth of the container mold, and means to maintain the bottom section and the top section in any one of a number of adjusted assembled positions for accommodating panels and cement cases of varying depths.

5. The invention according to claim 4 in which the means to maintain the bottom section and the top section in assembled relation includes positive detent means.

6. The invention according to claim 3 in which flanges extend outwardly from the open top of the container mold to contact the undersurface of the panel.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,330,126 2/1920 Lisowski 249-157 X 2,160,794 5/1939 Price 52704 2,627,801 2/1953 Danziger 249-157 2,946,157 7/1960 Franz et al. 5227 2,952,099 9/ 1960 Futterer 5227 X 3,142,872 8/1964 Meyer 16-55 X 3,200,544 8/1965 Greek 5227 FOREIGN PATENTS 276,304 7/ 1914 Germany.

BOBBY R. GAY, Primary Examiner. 

1. A FLOOR DOOR CLOSER BUILDING STRUCTURE MOUNTED IN A THIN FLOOR OF LESS THICKNESS THAN THE DEPTH OF A CEMENT CASE IN WHICH SAID CLOSER IS MOUNTED AND SECURELY FIXING THE CEMENT CASE IN THE THIN FLOOR, SAID MOUNTING INCLUDING AN OPEN TOP CONTAINER MOLD HAVING A CLOSED BOTTOM AND SIDES, SAID CONTAINER MOLD IN PLAN BEING SUBSTANTIALLY LARGER THAN THE CEMENT CASE OF THE DOOR CLOSER, SAID OPEN TOP CONTAINER MOLD POSITIONED WITH ITS OPEN TOP EDGES IN ENGAGEMENT WITH THE UNDER SURFACE OF THE THIN FLOOR, AND CEMENT GROUT BETWEEN THE CEMENT CASE AND THE THIN FLOOR AND THE CONTAINER MOLD FILLING THE SPACE BETWEEN THE BOTTOM AND TOP OF THE THIN FLOOR AND THE SPACE INCLUDED WITHIN THE SIDES AND BOTTOM OF THE CONTAINER MOLD AND THE CEMENT CASE THEREBY RETAINING THE CEMENT CASE IN ACCURATE FIXED POSITION IN THE FLOOR, AND CONTAINER MOLD FOR RECEIVING THE DOOR CLOSER MECHANISM WHEREBY THE MOUNTING OF THE CEMENT CASE IS PERMANENT FOR THE LIFE OF THE BUILDING. 